Saturday, July 4 - Happy Birthday, America!

This
is our last full day in Hot Springs, and it started out cool and damp following
some overnight precipitation. All the
Manor’s guests again found their ways to the porch for the morning repast, and
we enjoyed conversations with some of them before all of us dispersed on our
respective excursions. There is an
adventuresome couple (also from North Texas) here on their two beautiful Harley
Davidsons, and it was fun to chat with them about our shared biking
interests. We noticed a large gaggle of
bikers passing by the Hilltop during breakfast, so they are sure to encounter
lots of other riding enthusiasts with whom to cruise the scenic local roads
today!

After hearing all week about the spectacular botanical gardens in the
southern part of the city, we had earmarked this morning as our time to
experience them. The route to Garvan
Gardens took us past and through some lovely newer neighborhoods (including the
Hot Springs Country Club) that we made plans to explore on our way back into
town.

The
Gardens are owned and maintained by the University of Arkansas after having
been established by a remarkable businesswoman and her second husband. Over 5 miles of paths for both walking and
golf cart travel lead visitors through luxuriant plantings co-mingled with
native forest; whimsical offerings to captivate children of all ages give way
to arboreal settings that can be transformed to host outdoor events on a grand
scale. We opted for a guided golf cart tour
and were soon off with our delightful and knowledgeable guide Barbara, who
regaled us with the sequence of events that led to the creation of the Gardens.

Here
we encountered yet another indicator of the smallness of our world: The Head
Gardener for these Gardens (Bob Byers [sp?]) has recently been appointed to an
analogous position overseeing the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens! Barbara was bemoaning the loss of this Master
Gardener, who was back in Hot Springs this weekend, as he still has a home
here. Even though we did not have the
chance to make his acquaintance today, perhaps we will be able to introduce
ourselves back home. The magnificence of
these Gardens is a testament to his talent, and Hot Springs’ loss is definitely
Fort Worth’s gain!

After taking our leave of Barbara back at the Visitor Center, we hiked a short distance to one
of the marvels of this sylvan spot: the jewel-like Anthony Chapel, the second
most popular wedding venue in the entire country. The Chapel is constructed entirely of wood
beams and glass, and gives the impression of having been chiseled from some
giant crystal before being nestled into its verdant surroundings. It is paired with an all-wood-beam campanile,
whose chimes mark the passing of the hours with familiar hymn tunes.

We
only covered about 1.7 miles of the trails; even so, there was a great deal of
interest in what we passed and photographed.
For example, there is the one portion of the numerous paths that is paved
entirely with antique bricks from one of Mrs. Garvan’s factories that was
destroyed by a fire. Adjoining the
Visitor Center is a G-gauge model train set-up representative of the various
industries that underwrote our benefactress’s fortune, and the trail past a
charming Fairy Garden leads one to the greenery-covered Mother “Gourd”
House. Many of the children we
encountered with their parents were happily engaged in a map-driven Treasure
Hunt, but even that merry activity did not detract from the serenity of our
surroundings. Indeed, the Garvan Gardens
themselves are a treasure and we the lucky hunters who can revel in their splendor!

Re-tracing
our route back downtown we took a few side jaunts on surprisingly long and meticulously manicured
roads that led to some secluded upscale communities bordering on Lake Hamilton: out of
our price range, but pleasant to amble through nonetheless. These neighborhoods are bounded and separated by forest, out of which popped two seemingly unafraid fauns onto the street in front of us as we were completing our circuit - what an enchanting moment! Then it was back to Central Avenue and lunch
at the Copper Penny Pub after visiting an excellent antique store that hadn’t
been open during last evening’s Art Walk.

We
were still discussing the possibility of going to Lake Hamilton for the
fireworks display when a nap attack occurred, so that topic was tabled until
such time as we regained consciousness…

At
about 7:30 we got in the car and made for the location that had been
identified in one of the local newspapers as possessing the best view of the
pyrotechnics, but when we got there it was already teeming with humanity, most
of whom appeared to have been camped out there for the better part of the
day. I would love to view the statistics on
the amount of alcohol (beer in particular) that was consumed before and during
the display in just this one location – Holy Schlitz!

Deciding
that discretion was the better part of valor (and knowing that we could watch A Capitol Fourth on PBS in the
mosquito-free comfort of our room), it was time to stop at Kilwin’s for a final
ice cream extravagance. While waiting there to be served and viewing the aftermath of their wildly busy day
(they were out of waffle cones – waaah!), we realized that there was one last touristy
item that hadn’t been crossed off our list.
So we hied ourselves and our ice cream across Central Avenue to a small corner
park that is home to one of the National Park’s uncovered free-flowing hot
springs, although neither of us was able to summon the gumption to actually
plunge our feet into the small rock-rimmed pool where the water collects at the base of
the mountain – that water was HOT!
(Duh…)

As
the evening shades settled in, it was time to return to the Manor to begin
packing for tomorrow morning’s departure.
We have had a relaxing time here, met a lot of terrific folks, taken in
some gorgeous vistas and, hopefully, made some inroads into deciding about a viable
retirement locale. Hot Springs will absolutely
be on the list of contenders; in fact, it would gratifying to us if we could be
active participants in this landmark city’s much-needed rehabilitation, so that
even more Americans could enjoy the quaint, easy-going charms that it offers and that are in such
short supply in our hectic lives. We’ll
be back – don’t say we didn’t warn you!

Thanks
for joining us for this year’s journey!
Now it’s time to begin planning the next one…